Title: History and Nature Inspire Artists – Part 3
En plein air, or plein air painting, is the act of painting outdoors. The practice was made into an art form by the French Impressionists who desired to paint light and its changing, ephemeral qualities. The Plein Air Painters of the Ozarks (PAPO) was founded in 2003. PAPO currently has around 60 members. The group meets weekly to paint en plein air on Wednesday mornings, April through November, at various locations in Northwest Arkansas. All are invited. Following each paint-out the group enjoys lunch together at a nearby restaurant or brown-bags on site. During this 2020 pandemic, they are following the recommended health guidelines.
One of the many locations used by PAPO over the years is Pratt Place and its surroundings on Markham Hill. Unless the developer is stopped, this quiet, secluded 200-acre urban forest sanctuary will be ruined by Specialized Real Estate Group's (SREG) planned development of around 530 living units, an 80-room hotel, a restaurant, other commercial buildings, parking lots, streets, and utilities. That's why a growing number of current and former Fayetteville residents are opposed to any development whatsoever on Markham Hill and Markham Rd leading up the hill. SREG is planning their development in bits and pieces, maybe in hopes that people won't notice. Like the frog sitting in a pot of water slowly coming to a boil. Eventually the frog is killed and Markham Hill is destroyed.
Ann Powers and Judy Maurer are members of PAPO. This weekly is about them, their artwork, and how history and nature, like that on Markham Hill, inspire them.
*** Ann Powers ***
Ann Powers was born in Jacksonville, Florida and grew up there. She attended the University of Florida in Gainesville for one year. Back then, women were supposed to be a teacher or a nurse, but Ann wanted to do something she thought was more “glamorous.” So, she moved to New York City for a two-year program at a Fashion Merchandising School. She then moved to Richmond, Virginia to work as an Assistant Buyer for the Thalhimers department store company. Ann later moved to Atlanta, Georgia to work at Emory University. In Atlanta, she met her husband, a graduate student at Georgia Tech, working toward a PhD in Organic Chemistry. After he completed his degree, they moved to Port Arthur, Texas where he worked for Texaco. When their twin boys were five, Ann started painting. She studied under numerous teachers and attended many workshops over the years. Ann and her husband moved to Arkansas when they retired. Ann wanted to live near water, so they found a house on Beaver Lake. Ann worked with others in Artists of Northwest Arkansas (ANA) to bring artists to the area to teach workshops. She also was a co-founder of PAPO. Ann has been painting plein air for 17 years now. “I love the feeling of being outdoors, especially in the Spring and the Fall when there are fewer bugs and the weather is nice.”
What inspires Ann about nature? “Color! There are so many colors outside. I am particularly fond of water with its reflections and color. When outside, you have an emotional experience of the surroundings. For example, you feel the wind, hot or cold. Painting outside does have time restraints in that the sun keeps moving, so the lights and shadows keep changing in what you are trying to paint.”
About her painting 'Evangeline’s Cottage': “Our plein air group went to Markham Hill for a paint-out and it was truly inspiring. I fell in love with the cottage and just had to paint it. So picturesque and charming. What a treat to try and capture that.”
About her painting 'Buffalo River': “I was in awe of the Buffalo River the first time I saw it.”
These and two other paintings by Ann Powers are either attached below or can be found on Facebook group Friends of Markham Hill under this weekly. You can contact Ann at annpowersart@cox.net or through the website https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/ann-powers
*** Judy Maurer ***
Judy Maurer was born and raised in Des Moines, Iowa. She enjoyed art classes in school but pursued a career in telephony. After she retired, Judy really started doing art. She and her husband moved to Northwest Arkansas in 1998 where they found their perfect house on Beaver Lake. Judy describes herself as a landscape painter who collects inspiration from nature. On her website she explains, “Along with my love of being outdoors and exploring, I am attracted by the effect of light as it travels across land. Sometimes wildlife or people wander onto my canvas and I do enjoy painting figures from life. I started working in pastel in the mid-nineties and reluctantly moved on to oil paint after many years. My latest work may be either oil or pastel, whichever I feel expresses the painting concept the best."
Judy was one of the charter members of the Plein Air Painters of the Ozarks (PAPO) and is a member of the Artists of Northwest Arkansas (ANA). Judy sold her first painting in 2000 from an art show held in the Joy Pratt Markham Gallery in the Walton Arts Center. The curator was Rebecca Johnson at the time.
What inspires Judy about nature? “I like being outside. I look at nature and study it. In painting landscapes, there’s something “more” when looking at real life than just looking at a photograph. I want to capture the spirit and life of nature or of the person I am painting. It’s a right brain thing.”
“I painted with PAPO on Markham Hill a long time ago. I remember painting some flower urns out in front of Pratt Place when a guy appeared with a snake wrapped around him. Crazy times!"
Judy's paintings 'Boxley Valley', 'Along the Trail', and 'Forest Spirit' remind me of Markham Hill. They are either attached below or can be found on Facebook group Friends of Markham Hill under this weekly. You can contact Judy Maurer through her website https://www.judymaurer.com/
Since only one painting is allowed to be attached on a visitor post in this group, I have chosen 'Forest Spirit' by Judy Maurer.
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